Flight 93 National Memorial mission statement revealed

A draft of the Flight 93 National Memorial mission statement begins with those words, which were penned by a Los Angeles city firefighter and delivered to Somerset County on commemorative quilt.

The statement ends with seven guidelines for potential memorial designers, outlining the memorial's purpose and the feelings that should be conveyed there.

Officials released a draft of the mission statement Friday at the third meeting of the Flight 93 Federal Advisory Commission in Somerset.

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The commission authorized the use of the "working draft" in Flight 93 memorial planning activities, while allowing room for any editing or revisions that might be necessary. The commission will approve a final draft later this year.

"Our anticipation is to have a final draft available by the (commission's) July (30) meeting," said Somerset County District Attorney Jerry Spangler, who co-chairs the Memorial Ideas Planning Committee along with Flight 93 family member Esther Heymann.

The mission statement was developed from hundreds of comments derived from Flight 93 family members, commission members, first responders and residents both local and worldwide, Spangler said. Mailings and Internet queries alone produced more than 450 responses.

Respondents were asked why the creation of a memorial was important to them and what ideas and concepts it should convey. They also were asked to describe a visit to the proposed memorial and their biggest fears and concerns about the memorial process.

The committee used those comments to develop the mission statement, which officials have referred to as the "DNA" of the memorial process. The statement was developed after 11 meetings' worth of "vigorous editing," according to Spangler.

"This was a collective and collaborative effort," he said. "I did the original draft, and very little of that draft is in existence anymore. No single person should take credit for this. It was a collaborative effort."

A preamble to the mission statement begins with the quote: "A common field one day. A field of honor forever."

That quote came from Capt. Stephen Ruda, a Los Angeles City Fire Department firefighter who traveled to New York City following the terrorist attacks to help and honor his fellow firefighters, said Donna Glessner of Shanksville, the commission's vice chairman.

Ruda's quote was part of a tribute quilt that was delivered to Somerset County on behalf of the department. Ruda hasn't actually visited the Flight 93 crash site in Stonycreek Township, Glessner said, but his words seemed as appropriate as any.

"It struck us because we knew he had never been here and yet he could see so clearly what the essence of this place is," she said.

Ruda could not be reached for comment Friday.

The remainder of the preamble states, "May all who visit this place remember the collective acts of courage and sacrifice of the passengers and crew, revere this hallowed ground as the final resting place of those heroes, and reflect on the power of individuals who choose to make a difference."

Commission members were impressed with the working draft.

"To me, writing and words that come together (correctly) make you feel something. (With that in mind), you've succeeded with just the preamble," said Commissioner Pamela Tokar-Ickes, a former newspaper writer. "If you feel something, you've succeeded."

"I'm simply in awe of what you've been able to accomplish," added commission member Edward Linenthal, a University of Wisconsin professor who is considered an expert on memorials.

The mission statement will be used throughout the memorial process, but primarily as a set of guidelines for designers in the upcoming memorial design competition.

According to the statement, the mission of the Flight 93 National Memorial is to honor "the heroism courage and enduring sacrifice" of the flight's passengers and crew, "remember and commemorate" the events of Sept. 11, 2001 and "revere this hallowed ground as the final resting place of heroes."

In addition, the memorial should educate visitors about the events of Sept. 11 and offer a place of "comfort, hope and inspiration," according to the statement.

Designers will rely on those ideas when they take part in a memorial design competition later this year, officials said. The competition will be open to everyone from grade school students to professional architects.

The competition is set to begin Sept. 11, the third anniversary of the terrorist attacks.

The committee was given authority Friday to edit the mission statement for accuracy or clarity. The document will be reviewed by Flight 93 family members, a professional writer and the FBI before it is approved on July 30, sources said.

"We have to run it by a variety of groups to make sure it reflects their concerns," Spangler said.

In other business Friday, the commission endorsed the creation of a general management plan coordinating committee.

The committee will provide local input throughout the memorial planning process, according to Jeff Reinbold, project manager and planner for the National Park Service.

When the finalists in the design competition are chosen, the committee will be responsible for determining how each individual design will impact the local community, Reinbold said. The committee will include Tokar-Ickes, Stonycreek Township supervisor Gregory Walker and other county residents.

The Flight 93 Federal Advisory Commission has until September 2005 to submit recommendations for the planning, design, construction and long-term management of a permanent memorial to Congress and the Secretary of the Interior.